Turkish Citizenship with Investment Scheme from a Turkish Tax Perspective

International Arbitration

Ketenci&Ketenci London Office

Litigation

Company Formation in Turkey

Doing Business in Turkey

Renewable Energy Law in Turkey

New Turkish Appeal System

Obtaining Turkish Residency and Work Permits

About Us

Ketenci & Ketenci is a leading Turkish law firm with a top-tier global reputation in both advisory and contentious matters.

Our team of international lawyers and advisors combines dynamism with a 40-year senior experience in legal practice. We offer an international approach when providing comprehensive legal services to our well-respected clients globally.

NEW TURKISH APPEAL SYSTEM INTRODUCED

On July 20, 2016, a new appeal procedure has entered into force in Turkey withrespect to the relevant articles laid down by the Turkish Civil Procedure Code, namedas “İstinaf Mahkemeleri” in Turkish. In this regard, 7 regional courts in major cities(İstanbul, Ankara, İzmir, Antalya, Erzurum, Gaziantep, Samsun) have beenestablished initially and the previous appeal system has been changed. Decisionsgiven by the Turkish Courts of First Instance prior to July 20, 2016 will however besubject to the former appeal system
http://www.ketencilaw.com/new-turkish- appeal-system.html

EB-5 US Investor Visa / Green Card Program

The EB-5 investor visa is a green card option for a foreign entrepreneur who is willingto buy or start a business as direct Investment or to invest in a job-creating project inthe USA.

The bill regulating such program was originally due to lapse on September 30, 2015but was extended several times over the year. Prior to the expiration of the mostrecent extension until December 16th 2015, the US Congress was consideringvarious immigration bills that would renovate the EB-5 program. Some of thechanges that were being discussed within that scope was as follows;

Minimum capital threshold requirement would be increased to $800,000 forhigh unemployment areas and $1,200,000 for other areas

Targeted employment area definition would be amended in a way thateliminates important metropolitan areas from consideration

Development of a system to ensure that new EB-5 capital investment projectsare pre-approved by United States Citizenship and Immigration Services(USCIS) to provide security to investors with more predictable USCISprocessing of visa applications.

However, the EB-5 program has been renewed in its present state until September30, 2016 with no changes, as there were many controversies going on the proposedamendments and it became clear that certain points of the draft needed furthernegotiation, comment, and study.

TURKISH ENERGY NEWS

Turkey’s Ambassador to Azerbaijan has announced that the the Trans-AnatolianNatural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) Project is ahead of schedule, and its completion maylikely be earlier than the projected 2018 date. TANAP will bring natural gas primarilyto Turkey, but will also supply other European countries via the Trans-AdriaticPipeline (TAP).

The International Court of Arbitrage ruled in favor of Turkey over a gap price disputebetween Turkey and Iran, leaving Iran to pay USD 1.9 billion in compensation. In2012, Turkey sued Iran for overpricing on gas purchases during the four-year periodbetween 2011 and 2015. The two countries have also agreed on a 13.3 percentdiscount on gas prices delivered from Iran to Turkey.

Renewables to mark energy growth in next 25 years: IEA chief

The renewable energy sector will see the highest growth among all sectors in thenext 25 years, the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA) has said, whilewarning about a serious slowdown in the oil sector. “With the launch of ambitiousrenewable energy policies and the accompanying incentives by China and the U.S.,we expect the lowering trend in renewable energy costs to continue,” he noted

NEW JAPANESE INVESTMENTS IN TURKEY

Many Japanese companies have recently set their sights on investing in the Aegeanprovince of Izmir, a region seen as the opening gate to European, Middle Easternand North African markets. Investing companies include Japanese food giant NipponHam, spare automotive parts manufacturer Denso Corp and Yanmar Corp, andJapan’s Sun Chemical, which has started a factory in the Aliağa district in a USD 30million investment. Inci Holding, one of the Aegean’s largest conglomerates, andJapan’s GS Yuasa Corp signed a deal to collaborate in research and development toco-produce car batteries.